Magoun Square Neighborhood Association Blog

On Monday, March 24, 2014 at 6:00PM at the VNA facility located at 259 Lowell St in the third floor community room, Alderman Mark Niedergang, members of the design team from the Department of Transportation and the MBTA as well as other elected officials will present the plans for sound, light and vibration attenuation for the new Lowell Street Green Line station.We encourage all residents who are within shouting distance of the station to attend this meeting, hear what is proposed and ask your own questions. If you cannot attend, please feel free to contact Alderman Mark Niedergang,(617-629-8033 or m.neidergang@comcast.net, the design team members for the station or me.Hope to see you there.Joe LynchMagoun Square Neighborhood Association

Welcome to our newly elected and re-elected friends in City government. Congratulations to Alderman Bill White, Dennis Sullivan, Jack Connolly, all re-elected at large alderman and our newly elected Alderman at Large MaryJo Rossetti, the Alderman elect from Ward 5 Mark Niedergang and School Committeeperson elect, Laura Pitone.

Welcome to the Magoun Square neighborhood. Come see us anytime.

CANDIDATE FOR WARD 5 ALDERMAN MARK NIEDERGANG AND MAGOUN

SQUARE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION FOUNDER JOE LYNCH

Hello Magoun Square and Ward 5 Neighbor,October,
2013

I am writing today to proudly announce my support and
endorsement of Mark Niedergang for our next Ward 5 Alderman.

Since 2001 and the founding of the Magoun Square
Neighborhood Association, we have worked with our state and city officials to
steadily improve our neighborhood, Ward 5 and our great city.We have enjoyed and appreciated the support
of many of those officials, including the Ward 5 School Committeeman Mark
Niedergang.Mark has worked not only to
improve the education of our next generation of Somervillians, but has also
worked to secure their future in our city.I am asking you to support Mark when he takes the job as Ward 5 Alderman
to further those efforts.

We have fought for support of the $2.5 million
rehabilitation of Magoun Square.The fruits
of our efforts are evident for all to see.We have battled for the enhancements at Trum Field and the Henry Hanson
Park.And many of you stood together
with us to make sure the community path is extended to our neighborhood, to
make sure the former rodent filled, blight on our neighborhood, then known as
MaxPac, became the now vibrant and transit oriented residential community known
as Maxwell’s Green, and we will continue to stand together to make sure the
MBTA fulfills their obligation and returns a T stop to our neighborhood when
the Green Line is extended.

We need a strong, experienced, consistent and loyal advocate
in this fight who knows how to advocate for constituents.For eight years Mark has earned the praise
and support of his constituents --- not just parents, but from all voters who
have continued to return him to office.He has shown not just a maturity in his advocacy of our rights and needs
to City Hall, but has shown he does not have to bend to outside interests to
get the job done.

While we have achieved much in our neighborhood and ward, we
need a strong advocate who can not only advocate for filling potholes, addressing
health and safety issues and use their experience to make wise municipal
decisions, but through that experience, can see the bigger picture for our
neighborhood, our ward and our community.

I invite you to join me in casting your important vote for
Mark Niedergang on November 5, 2013.Together there is no limit to what our neighborhood, our ward and our
city can be.

If you've seen our sign, please call and let someone in the City know you've found it.

Last seen firmly attached to the recently installed posts, our sign has been missing for almost 3 weeks.

Please, stop playing games and give us a sign.

MAGOUN SQUARE - WE HAVE SIGNAGE!

After a nine year wait, Magoun Square finally has a sign.

Installed on the plaza outside the CVS this week, this sign has been lobbied for by the residents, businesses and property owners for years. The Neighborhood Association encourages you to go see it for yourself. Thank you to the city and thanks to all for your encouragement and tenacity.

Joe Lynch

Founder

After a bit of a hiatus, we're coming back bigger, better, stronger and louder than ever before. As most of you know, the Magoun Square construction project is almost complete. With the expected placement of the Magoun Square signage in March, we expect to jump start this blog with more of what matters most to you, the neighbors and businesses of Magoun Square, Somerville, MA.

Watch this space for the blog re-do, some new contributors and major initiatives in our neck of Somerville.

A reminder that the city will commence with street sweeping on April 1, 2011. All city streets are posted with the appropriate information concerning dates, days and times of the sweeping schedule. Please note that fines are imposed for not removing your vehicle during the posted dates and times.

Additionally, the Magoun Square revitalization project has resumed this week. The old street lighting will be removed, traffic light signalization will be fine tuned and on street parking meters are scheduled to be re-installed during the month of April.

For addtional information concerning the project, please call the city's information line (311) or feel free to contact me with questions or concerns.

We are pleased to announce that several sources inside City Hall have confirmed that Mass Highway, the project managers of the Magoun Square project, plan to finish up next week(weather permitting) with the long awaited re-paving of the Magoun Square sections of Medford St and Broadway.

Although there will be the usual punch list of items to be addressed, we are pleased that this project should meet the expected completion date.

First conceived of by a group of area residents and businesses, the project includes some new underground utilities, updated traffic signalization, reconstructed(and ADA compliant) sidewalks, repaving of Medford St and Broadway within the square, new energy efficient and decorative street lights, benches, trees, crosswalks, bike racks, and other amenities.

The funding source for this project was obtained through a $2.3 million dollar Federal Stimulus and Recovery Act grant.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to call or emial me.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently announced that the completion of the long awaited GreenLine rapid transit extension into Somerville and Medford will be moved to October 2015 from the court mandated completion date of December 2014. This delay will affect the opening/completion date of the proposed Lowell Street/Magoun Square station.

For the most up to date and accurate information, please visit the Massachusetts DOT website, the MBTA's GreenLine page or the Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership(STEP) website.

Greetings and Happy Fourth of July. Once again the City of Somerville presents the annual fireworks and celebration at Trum Field. This event requires that certain streets in our neighborhood close and addition parking restrictions instituted.

Please visit the City of Somerville website at www.somervillema.gov for the most accurate schedule and complete list of street closures, times and other traffic and parking restrictions.

For the safety of the general public, we urge all residents to obey the parking rules and regulations, especially near fire hydrants and fire lanes.

On April 1, 2010, the city of Somerville notified residents and businesses via a recorded telephone message that the long awaited construction of streetscape, traffic, and pedestrian safety improvements will begin on April 5, 2010.

The Magoun Square Neighborhood Association is pleased that construction will be underway and will continue for at least the next six months.

We encourage all businesses and residents to use the city's website to obtain the most accurate and up to date information on the project.

Should there be any questions or concerns not answered on the city's website, as always feel free to contact me through this site, or my personal email(jplcorp2004@yahoo.com) or call me at home anytime(617-623-0891).

We look forward to this long awaited enhancement and improvement project.

Over the next six months, contractors for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation will perform field work in support of the MBTA Green Line extension to Somerville and Medford. Teams will perform field surveys, noise and vibration testing, and soil borings to collect information for the extension design. People who live and work along the right-of-way may see these professional surveyors and others, who are authorized to work within and around the MBTA right-of-way.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently sent letters about the work to abutters to the rail right-of-way. The abutters list was obtained from the most recent records of the city of Somerville.

Should you have questions about the work being performed on the rail right-of-way, please contact Kate Fichter, Green Line Extension Project Manager, 617-973-7342 or email Kate at katherine.fichter@state.ma.us.

The September 16, 2009 meeting at the VNA was well attended by area residents, businesses and property owners as well as city officials. Alderman O'Donovan welcomed the attendees and David Giangrande of Design Consultants, Inc., the city's project consultant, gave an overview of the final design.

The nine year old, $3.1 million dollar, federally funded project is scheduled to begin in earnest in the spring of 2010. Preliminary utility work is expected to continue, weather permitting, until the end of 2009.

The Massachusettts Highway Department, assisted by Somerville's Department of Public Works will co-manage the project.

We will be posting a more detailed timeline and history of the project in the coming weeks on this site. Please follow the link on this site to the City of Somerville's website, Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development, major projects list.

If you have any questions in the interim, please do not hesitate to call or email me directly at jplcorp2004@yahoo.com or 617-623-0891.

We look forward to the start of this long promised revitalization of Magoun Square.

After eight years in the making, the City has announced that the final redevelopment plans for the revitalization of Magoun Square and the proposed construction schedule will be unveiled at a community meeting on Wednesday, September 16, 2009.

The meeting will be held at the Visiting Nurses Community Living Center, 259 Lowell Street, at 6:30 PM.

According to Monica Lamboy, the city's Director of Strategic Planning and Community Development, the final plans for the redevelopment can be found on the city's website.

The Magoun Square revitalization project was first conceived and launched by a group of residents, Magoun Square business and property owners and the Kelly Gay administration in 2001.

A recent announcement from the city states that due to its "shovel ready" status, the revitalization project has qualified for $3,000,000.00 in the federal governments economic stimulus funding program.

We encourage all residents, property and business owners to attend this very important community information meeting.

For more information about the project, go to the City of Somerville's website or contact Brad Rawson, Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development, 617-625-6600 x2500 or at brawson@somerville.gov.

We look forward to an informative meeting and the start of the revitalization of Magoun Square.

The Traffic Board of the City of Somerville will meet on August 13, 2009, 6:00 PM in the Alderman's Chamber to hear comments and suggenstions from the public concerning the recent traffic and parking rules and regulation changes.

If you want your voice to be heard, please attend this meeting and let the city know your concerns.

SCC and its Community Corridor Planning partners are hosting neighborhood meetings in the areas 0.5 miles around proposed Green Line train stops. These meetings will give neighbors a chance to consider their own geographic location, imagine what it will be like once the Green Line arrives, and set the wheels in motion for creating it.Join them in building a grassroots voice to help shape priorities and plans for Somerville’s future in relation to the Green Line. Snacks, childcare, and interpretation in Spanish and Portuguese can be provided.

The Magoun Square Neighborhood Association congratulates the residents, businesses and organizations of this great city for all that they have done to contribute to winning this award. A special thank you and congratulations to "Team Somerville" who so winningly represented out city in Tampa.

Members of the Magoun Square Neigborhood Association along with other neighborhood associations will meet with members of the newly formed Somerville Parking Advocacy and Reform Coalition on Thursday night to discuss the proposed parking regulations put forth by the City of Somerville.

Among the many topics that were discussed was the new parking regulations for Magoun Square, as well as, a mention of the upcoming renovation. New parking regulations to go into effect include a meter expansion to 10pm (meters would have to be fed until 10pm). This regulation is also being implemented in Davis Square. All other squares will have an extension to 8pm.

Alderman Bill White, Chairman of the BOA Subcommittee on Public Safety, has scheduled a meeting to further discuss the issues surrounding the "Sober Surroundings" operation located at 31 Wilton Street. It is anticipated that the City Solicitor's office will issue their legal opinion regarding the zoning issues with this property.

The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 30th, 2009 in the Alderman's meeting room on the second floor of City Hall.

If you have any questions in the interim, please feel free to call me at 617-623-0891 or Alderman Bill White at 617-625-9110.

The City of Somerville wants to invite you to an Open House to learn more about various city planning and development initiatives that are going on in Somerville today. We know many people have questions about the upcoming Green Line Extension, what is happening at Assembly Square, and what are the future plans for their neighborhood? This is an opportunity to ask questions and learn new information. There will be 16 different tables of information at the SomerVision Open House and even opportunities to win prizes!

If you are interested in The Green Line Extension, there have been two public meetings scheduled that will feature a presentation by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation (EOT). An open discussion period will be held from 5:30pm-6:30pm. At 6:30pm the presentation will be made with a question/answer period to follow.

Max Pac

In this episode, Joe discusses the fate of the Max Pac site on Lowell Street with the developer who is proposing a for-sale, multi-family residential development consisting of 199 units including a mix of unit types.
For more information on KSS Realty or Max Pac, please visit our Max Pac section.